The UK-listed banking group reported a mixed set of figures in the private banking and wealth management business. One factor was a rise in operating expenses amid continued investment to support business growth, and some inflationary effects, countered partly by efficiency savings.

The private bank and wealth management division of Barclays today reported profit, attributable to shareholders, of £148 million ($196.7 million) in the half year to 30 June, a 20 per cent fall, while second-quarter 2026 profit dipped 15 per cent year-on-year to £75 million.

Total income rose 2 per cent year-on-year in the half-year period to £713 million, the UK-listed bank said in a statement; total operating expenses rose 11 per cent to £524 million in H1 from a year earlier. Credit impairments stood at £3 million, reversing a net gain of £11 million in the previous year.

The rise in operating costs reflected investment to support business growth strategy and inflationary headwinds, partially offset by efficiency savings.

The division’s cost/income ratio widened to 73 per cent from 68 per cent for the half-year period. Return on average allocated tangible equity was 26.1 per cent, down from 33.2 per cent, the bank said. 

Net new assets under management were £1.8 billion in H1 2026, easing a touch from the same half-year period in 2025. Total assets under management stood at £55.8 billion at the end of June this year, rising from £52.9 billion at the end of December. Assets under supervision were £86.7 billion, down from £87.7 billion at end-2025.

Group results
At the level of the entire bank, Barclays said its half-year attributable profit was £4.2 billion, up from £3.52 billion a year earlier.

The bank had a Common Equity Tier 1 capital ratio of 1.43 per cent, and return on tangible equity (ROTE) for H1 at 14.8 per cent, delivering earnings per share in the half-year period of 30.7 pence per share.

Shares in Barclays have fallen about 6 per cent since the start of January.

Looking ahead, Barclays said that for the whole of 2026, it Is targeting a ROTE of more than 12 per cent; it also intends to return at least £10 billion of capital to shareholders between 2024 and 2026, preferring to do so via share buybacks, and has progressively increased total capital returns since 2025. 

The bank said it is looking to keep its CET1 ratio in the 13-14 per cent target range in 2026.

Turning to 2028, Barclays wants its group ROTE to be higher than 14 per cent; between 2026 and 2028, it intends to return more than £15 billion of capital to investors.